De Blasio’s new voting czar skipped casting her ballot in a number of past elections

October 5, 2018

Ayirini Fonseca-Sabune missed casting her own ballot in the past, including in last year’s Democratic primary for mayor, according to her voting records. (Courtesy Ayirini Fonseca-Sabun)

Do as she says, not as she does.

The city’s new chief democracy officer, Ayirini Fonseca-Sabune, will be tasked with convincing New Yorkers to vote — but she’s missed casting her own ballot in the past, including in last year’s Democratic primary for mayor, according to her voting records.

The records, first reported by the New York Times, show that while Fonseca-Sabune has not missed a general election in recent years, she has missed a few primaries — including the 2017 race for mayor, in which her new boss Mayor de Blasio easily beat back a challenge from former city councilman Sal Albanese.

She did vote in this year’s Democratic primary for statewide offices; in last year’s general election for mayor when de Blasio bested Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, and in the 2016 presidential election, as well as that April’s presidential primary.

The voting czar skipped a June congressional primary in 2016, as well as a September Assembly primary the same year.

Good government groups often argue that New York should stop holding its federal primaries in June, a time of year when few people are thinking of elections — the kind of reform Fonseca-Sabune may be tasked with pushing for in her new job.

Hizzoner said the civil and human rights lawyer’s voting record didn’t disqualify her from the job — and said he agreed with Fonseca-Sabune’s explanation to the Times that every day people sometimes struggle to vote in every New York election “because there’s no early voting, because there’s no same-day registration, there’s no vote by mail.”

And some people don’t put as much emphasis on voting in primary elections, he said.

“I would love to see everyone vote in all primaries and all general elections but the one that people, I think civically have to focus on the most, of course, is the general election. And from what I’ve seen, she voted very consistently in general elections. So, I’m perfectly comfortable with the situation,” he said.